World of Dust
by Nimfalath
Summary: To save a dying man, Raven opens a portal to another world. It is a world of armored bears, witches, and daemons, and a place of terrible secrets. Only the Titans, with Lyra and Pantalaimon's help, can save the witch clans. TT/HDM
1. Chapter 1

_I'm not sure how well this will be accepted... This is a Teen Titans/His Dark Materials crossover. (The Golden Compass, Subtle Knife, and Amber Spyglass.) If you Titans fans have never seen or read the Golden Compass or the rest of the trilogy, I've written this story so it will still make sense. If you're in the dark, so are the Titans, and they'll figure everything out eventually, so you will too. Alright? Great._

I don't own Teen Titans or His Dark Materials. This may contain indirect HDM spoilers.

Enjoy!

* * *

"Are you alright?" Robin asked, kneeling beside the man. 

"I'm dying," came the whispered reply.

The Titans formed a huddle around his prone body, watching him with wary eyes, empathetic of his pain. But pain from where? Beast Boy became a dog and approached the dog lying across the man's chest. His nose came within inches of the real dog's before the man burst into liveliness for a moment and swatted the changeling away.

"Don't touch her," he warned, comforting his companion in death. The dog looked sicklier than he did, but she eyed them all with a deep level of understanding. Her coat was slick and gray and beautiful, but she was dying. That much was clear. The dog turned to the man and appeared to whisper to him. A comforting look passed over the man, and he stroked his friend's head. Their eyes were glazed over with death, but death from where? Raven's mind reeled. There were no injuries on either of them, not even from Dr. Light's attack minutes ago. Then why were they dying? They seemed to draw their energy from each other, but there was no energy left. Why were they dying?

Sensing her question, the man turned to her with a heavy head and said, "We cannot live so far from home. She cannot live…we cannot live…" The dog was shaking now, and she licked the man's aged face fervently. She trembled and shook, and so did the man. They were dying.

"Please, let us help you," Starfire crooned, engrossed in their pain. Jericho silently laid a sympathetic hand on the man's shoulder. "There must be something we can do."

Raven stepped forward. "I can heal you," she offered. "I can-" The dog painfully twisted her head around to face Raven, who fell silent. She looked from one Titan to the next, studying each of their faces. Then she opened her mouth and, much to the shock of the team, she spoke.

"I know you mean well," the animal crowed in a voice low and reverberating, "but please leave us alone. There is no cure for us. There is nothing to heal our wounds. It's been ten years…" but the animal trailed off, lost in the growing darkness of her mind. Seeing her weakness, the man continued for her.

"It's been ten years since we came here. Almost eleven. She cannot live so far away from home…we cannot live…" The man was becoming repetitive in his fight for life.

"Is there a cure back home?" Cyborg asked the man, desperate to help. The man laughed manically, tossing his head left and right.

"Going back won't help us now. We can't go back. The window is gone and we can't go back…ten years…now the window is gone…they're all gone…" The gray dog let her head rest on the man's chest, and she would talk no more to the Titans. Robin turned to his team. They couldn't continue to be distracted—there was still Dr. Light, after all.

"Beast Boy, Cyborg," Robin spoke, demanding their attention. "We're going to get rid of Dr. Light. The rest of you guys"—he gestured to Raven, Starfire, and Jericho—"stay here and get him some help." The Titans reluctantly nodded, questioning not the judgment of their leader but how they could possibly help. The man had said himself that he was dying, Raven wanted to point out. He had said there was nothing to be done. But even she was anxious to ease his suffering, and the suffering of his strange friend. Their pain was radiant, and she felt it seep into every portion of her body. Whatever was happening to them, it was terrible. She wanted to help.

_At least they have each other_, Raven decided. _It's a terrible thing, being alone._ As the imprisoned Dr. Light disappeared from view, Raven turned to the remaining Titans. Jericho's green eyes reflected nothing but worry, and Starfire was so lost in grief that Raven was shocked by the weight of such a negative emotion in the Tamaranian. Her tall form was bent over in sorrow, and her bright red hair fell over her face. Raven took a moment to swallow her heart back into her chest before speaking.

"I want to get him to the Tower," she told them. "There must be a spell to save him, whether he thinks he can be saved or not."

"Oh, yes!" Starfire cried at once. "Come, I shall help you carry him…" Jericho nodded in agreement. Raven wrapped her mind around Jericho and the dog as Starfire helped the man to his feet. A growl of protest rumbled from the dog's throat as she was lifted into the air away from her man, but she was too weak to disagree wholeheartedly. As they soared into the air toward the tower, the man continued to wail in a half-mad slur of words.

"The window is gone…we cannot get home…too late anyway…shouldn't have left…oh, my heart!…the window is gone…Maya will die…oh, my _heart_…"

And for some unutterable reason, Raven felt entirely sick for ripping the dog away from the man.

* * *

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Starfire asked once more, unwilling to leave Raven and the man. 

"No," said Raven. "Go on, I need some quiet." Despite Raven's demand, Starfire stood defiantly in her place. Jericho also lingered, unable to leave her alone. He had only recently joined the team, but he had quickly become a member of their quirky family. Raven's face softened. "I don't need any help. Really." Jericho gave Raven a weak smile and a quick nod, but followed Starfire's example. They weren't going anywhere.

"We will be here in case you do," Starfire told her. Raven knew it was no use trying to persuade them anymore, so she sighed and allowed them to stay.

Raven drew a familiar book from the shelf and flipped through the pages. The man lay weakly on her bed, and the dog ("Maya", they had learned) had snuggled up against his chest. _Closer to his heart_, Raven realized. The two entities before her intrigued her to no end.

"I want to help you," she told him—them? It should have felt strange to address a dog, but she had been through stranger things. "But…I need to know what's wrong. I can't heal you unless I know why you're sick." Maya had not spoken again yet, and it was the man who responded. Raven sensed a fog in his mind, but he wasn't gone yet. There was time to save him, if she could hurry.

"It's not an illness you can cure," croaked the man. "A dæmon cannot live in another world…Maya cannot live here…"

Raven's blood ran cold, and Starfire involuntarily uttered a small gasp. Jericho glimpsed at them both, a look of confusion and horror frozen onto his face.

"A…demon…?" Raven reaffirmed it. Her heartbeat accelerated, her temple began to pound…

"No…" The man waved a hand drunkenly at them. "In your world a demon is something evil, a servant of the devil. A _dæmon_…in my world, everyone has a dæmon. She is my _heart_. She is my _soul_. When I first came here, I was horrified…but your people are whole, so you still have dæmons. They're _inside _of you… but we were not born here, so we will die. Not in this world…You cannot help us…"

Raven stared at the man stupidly, exchanging a glance at the others. The dog was not a dog…Well, that had been clear the moment she had spoken. The man's words about dæmons had not stirred questions inside her, but rather the words that had alluded to an even greater concept. They were from another _world_.

"Do you mean another planet?" Starfire asked him excitedly. " I also hail from an alien world."

Raven considered the situation carefully, unsure of how deep to prod, yet knowing that she must. Almost as soon as the question left Starfire's lips, Raven realized what he had meant. He was from another _dimension_. Another world entirely, like her Azarath. He must have found a window into Jump City and… Raven cleared her throat. "You meant…"

"Another world," repeated Maya weakly.

"Another dimension, like Azarath," Raven repeated aloud, for the sake of her confused teammates. Raven breathed in deeply and exhaled slowly. The bizarre and unusual was usual business for the titans, but he was speaking of matters she could not understand. She didn't know what a dæmon was or why it couldn't live here, and (notwithstanding the man's assurance) she and her friends clearly had no such thing. There was one thing she did know, though, and maybe that would be enough to help.

"I can open portals to Azarath," she began, certain that at least one of the beings heard her words, "so I may be able to open a portal to your world. Another window. I…don't know why you're sick, but if you could return to your own _world_…maybe you could find the help you need."

"Please," was all he said. Jericho took a step forward, his hands moving in a wave of concern.

'Are you sure that's a good idea?' he signed. 'You don't know what could happen…'

"I don't know what will happen," Raven affirmed, "but it's the only thing I can do. What could happen?"

'Don't say that,' Jericho warned with a smile.

"Do what you think is best," Starfire advised.

"Alright," she answered. Then she turned to the man. "What is your name?"

"David."

Raven closed her eyes, gathering her emotions deep inside herself. Her room burst into life. Books, candles, sheets flew from the space, creating a clear site on her floor. Getting into Azarath was difficult; only those who have been there before can find the door. She hoped finding this world would be simpler. Jericho and Starfire backed out of her way, giving her plenty of space. Raven turned away from her bed and faced her companions. Her wandering mind settled as she concentrated heavily. _I've done this so many times…I can do this…_ She sat on the floor, her mind clearing completely. She cleared her mind and sat down. A cooling calm eased into her veins, and her mind was entranced, hovering in a state of complete evanescence. She began her familiar chant.

"Azarath, metrion zinthos…"

Raven felt the air with her mind, seeking out a point…any point… no, _the_ point that would take her…take her mind away to…open… She groped the intangible air, seeking the tangible.

"Azarath, metrion zinthos…"

She pictured David, Maya. There were so many worlds at her fingertips, a number so vast she could bare fathom the immensity of it all. Which one? Maya, David…dæmons, humans. Somewhere…closer…

"Azarath, metrion zinthos…"

Snag. She felt the edge. It was the world; a deep prodding in her heart seemed to confirm it.

"Azarath—

Raven penetrated the opening, stretched it, felt it give way.

"Metrion—

Her mind tore the rip even more, sliced through the air itself. Bigger, bigger…

Her friends watched in wonder.

"Zinthos!!"

A rush of wind chilled the air. Raven opened her eyes. In front of her, right in the center of the floor, the room opened into a wooded mountain. There was a waterfall, rainbows dancing, the cool, fresh scent of pine. It was another world. David's eyes widened, and Maya lifted her weary head to gaze at the beautiful scene. Raven trembled.

What had she done?

"Thank you," whispered David. "You've brought us peace…Thank you…" He hugged his dæmon tight against his chest and carried her into their own world. The purple carpet of Raven's room became a rocky mountainside, but as he passed through the window, Maya vanished into the air. A moment later, he fell into the rocky grass alone.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The man and the dog were dead. Raven could sense his lifelessness even from her own world, and Maya had become a vapor, vanished into the forest. Starfire held a hand against her lips, knowing the fate that had befallen them. Despite the deathly silence that had fallen on the room, there was a buzz of noise in the world a few steps away. Strange birds and creatures chirruped and squawked, and familiar ones sang with them. Hissing water rushed down the mountain somewhere far in the distance. But the window itself…the window stood like an omen, a rip in the fabric of space itself. Raven shivered at the thought of what she'd done. Something about it felt so wrong, like a crime committed against nature itself. And a haunting question rose in her mind: how would she close it?

Close it? No…she should go into it.

The alien wind rustled her hair, and a gold haze obscured her vision for an instant. At the very core of her heart, Raven felt a nudge. _Go inside_, her body told her. _Go and see the world you have opened. Go and explore your work. Go inside._ The cool, open air was so inviting, and the environment tickled her senses. _Come in_, beckoned the world, and so enticing was the temptation.

"Raven!" Starfire's voice broke her from the trance, and she found herself trembling uncontrollably. Jericho's hands steadied her as she fell backwards. "Raven, what is wrong?"

"Nothing, nothing," Raven said dimly as the spots faded from her vision. "I just…I don't know, I just spaced out or something…" She closed her eyes tightly, and opened them again. Her strength had suddenly returned, and she pulled herself defensively from Jericho's and Starfire's arms. The other two knew better than to question her more, and returned their gaze to the window instead.

"What happened to them?" Starfire wondered aloud.

"I'm not sure," Raven answered, unable to draw her eyes away from his fallen body only feet away. Something powerful prevented them from stepping through the window to retrieve his body, even prevented the _thought_ of crossing into the forbidding territory.

A noise downstairs told the Titans that the rest of their team had returned.

"I will tell them the news," Starfire said grimly, and flew to the door.

"Wait," Raven beckoned suddenly. "Wait, just…please don't tell them what I did." Starfire explored her friend's eyes solemnly. "I don't what anyone else to know about this...hole."

"I do not like to keep secrets from my friends," Starfire whispered, but then she met Raven's eyes again. "Alright," Starfire assured her, somewhat bewildered. "I will say nothing." Raven turned her attention to Jericho, who smiled and pantomimed zipping his lips.

"Thanks," Raven said. "Go on." Starfire sped away to spread the news.

Jericho looked sadly into her face as Starfire left. His fingers moved deftly, spelling out his sentences with a fluency like a voice of his own. Raven had picked up sign language faster than any of the others, and she deciphered his posture as easily as she deciphered his hands. Reading his heart and his mind was as simple as reading a spell book. His hand became a fist and circled his heart. 'I'm sorry,' he was saying now.

Raven was smiling sadly. "I don't know why. We didn't lose a member of our team or anything…"

'No, but you were trying so hard to help him,' he explained. His eyes locked on Raven's, and a look of understanding passed between them. 'We really hoped he would be alright, and I'm sorry we couldn't help more...' He placed a large hand on her shoulder, a comforting gesture, and turned to follow Star out of Raven's room. Raven's skin tingled where he had touched her, and her lips flicked into a grin. There was something truly and utterly friendly about their new teammate.

"Thank you, Jericho," she called after him. He nodded, bouncing his bright curls. Raven ran a hand through her own violet hair and watched him disappear out of the door.

_Come in_, beckoned the world as she stood alone in front of the atrocity.

"No, thanks," Raven told the air, and she left the temptation of her room.

The hall of the tower passed by in a whirl as she sped through the air, around a corner, and down steps. She slowed when she came through the double doors into their immense living room, and was bombarded suddenly by the Titans who were gathered in the space.

"Raven! What's wrong? Is everything alright?" The questions came so suddenly that Raven didn't have time to assign the voices to their faces. She pushed passed them and settled against one of the large windows, pressing herself against the cold glass and closer to her own world, the real world, the only world she should know…

Hands settled on her shoulder, and she responded breathlessly, "I can't…I can't..." She shook her head. An entire day had passed by, but she couldn't close the gap. This morning, to make matters worse, she had awoken to discover David's body had vanished, which meant someone, or something, from the other world had come very close to discovering the rift. And all this time it had jerked at her heartstrings, beckoned to her, pulled at her mind, body, and heart with a force stronger than gravity itself. It drew her ever closer and closer to the foreign woods. She could not endure it much longer.

But she could never tell the others what she had done. She could not. It was a burden for her to bear, a weight that belonged to her. She would suffer the endless tug of the world until she could find a way to shut it.

Yes, but they—her friends—might be able to help her!

How? They would force her to shut the forest away.

Raven blinked, shocked suddenly at the conflicting thoughts racing through her head.

Wait, no… She _wanted_ to shut the forest away. That's what she wanted…right?

Raven shuddered. She couldn't tell them. There was nothing to worry about, anyway… She could close it. Somehow, she would close it.

It wasn't right, it wasn't natural. A hole in the world!

Yes, but…

"What happened?" Cyborg prodded. Raven faced them, Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Starfire. The weight on her heart was lifted after leaving her room—her body wasn't pushing against her will, pulling her toward…

Raven shrugged. "Nothing. I…thought I heard something…but I guess it was nothing!" With her mind clear, she realized how absurd her intrusion must have been. _They can't know, don't let them know…_ She settled her mind, suppressing her emotions. When she looked back up at them, her face was nonchalant, secretive, and void. "Nothing is wrong," she assured them. "Don't worry."

"I do not believe you," said Starfire, "but if you do not wish to tell us, then I will not force you to speak." Starfire's sparkling green eyes showed deep concern, but—Raven was more than glad of this—she restrained herself.

"Yeah," Beast Boy echoed, "what she said. But you know, if you ever want to talk or anything, we're—"

"I don't need to talk," Raven declared, hardly comforting the boy. She wanted to add 'thank you', but she, like Starfire, restrained herself. Beast Boy looked helplessly at her, and Raven felt a sudden urge to escape. He had always cared for her, but she was not interested in someone so immature, so unlike herself, someone who could never begin to understand… Raven stared unblinkingly at him, and he shrunk away from the sudden ferocity of her eyes.

"Alright, alright," he said, throwing up his hands. "I was just saying…" He trailed off and turned, defeated, away from her entirely. Starfire put a reassuring hand on Raven's shoulder.

"I am very sorry," the Tamaranian told her suddenly. "We all hoped they would recover."

"Thanks, Star," Raven said robotically, allowing a smile to pass over her face. "It's…I did what I could to help." Starfire nodded and returned to her work on the couch, letting her fingers slide off Raven's shoulder.

"You know we're always here for you." Only Cyborg remained now, a humble friend.

"I know," Raven simply replied. "Thank you."

They were all such good friends.

Yes, but…

Titans tower was dark now, its halls silent. Raven, whose violent eyes glimmered in the darkness, reluctantly moved forward, drawing ever closer to her room. She dreaded the encounter, but a part of her looked forward to it. _Tap, tap_, her footsteps echoed behind her, but when she stopped she realized that it was another pair of feet altogether. She glanced over her shoulder and paused. It was Jericho.

The barefoot boy was dressed for bed, clad in a simple tank top and pants. He waved a hand in greeting as he approached, beaming with an emotive sympathy that only he could show. Raven smiled and uttered a quiet 'hi.'

'Are you alright?' he signed. So everyone knew about her outburst now.

"I'm fine," she lied to him as she had to the others, but, like the others, he didn't buy into a word she said. He saw her discomfort and tried to change the subject.

'Did you close it yet?' he asked offhandedly, but the words forced Raven to freeze. What should she say? She stared blankly at him, trying to look unconcerned. 'I'm sorry,' Jericho's hands spoke. 'It doesn't really matter that much…I was just curious. I know you'll figure out how to close—'

"Close what?" came a familiar voice. Raven felt her cheeks flush as Beast Boy approached from behind.

"Your mouth, I wish," she quipped. "What are you doing?"

"Just heading to bed," he said casually. "Thought I'd take the scenic route. Didn't mean to interrupt you—please, go on. What did you close? Man, it's cold over here…"

"If I wanted you to know, I would've told you," she answered coolly, successfully suppressing her annoyance. Jericho shrugged at him with a smile, as if saying, 'Hey, if she doesn't want to talk…'

"Suit yourself," Beast Boy said, pushing a toothbrush into his mouth and continuing indifferently down the hall. Raven turned to Jericho and tried hard not to laugh.

"He's so…"

'Obnoxious?' Jericho offered. Raven smiled.

"Yeah."

'I've noticed,' Jericho answered with a yawn. 'He tries so hard, though…'

Raven's smile vanished. "What do you mean?"

'He tries so hard to make you like him.'

She lowered her eyes, focusing on the grain of the carpet. "He shouldn't have to try," she said, meeting his eyes. "If I liked him, he wouldn't have to try. The fact that he _does_ just sort of confirms how much I _don't_…like him. But he has this false sense of hope, I think. He's got it in his mind that he can still win me over." She paused, studying his face. Was she boring him with all this nonsense? But Jericho looked back at her with true interest, and he searched her eyes too. Why had she stopped?

"I wish he'd realize that he can't just change my mind."

'Have you tried telling him?'

"Yes," she answered. Then, "No. I've tried before, but every time I'm the slightest bit nice to him, he thinks I'm starting to change my mind again. Then he's even more…pushy, because he thinks he has a chance." She sighed exasperatedly. "I can't be nice to him! I hate being so rude, but how else can I get him to understand?"

Jericho smiled. 'With Beast Boy, I don't think there _is_ another way.'

"Talking certainly doesn't help," she agreed, chuckling. His eyes lit up, and he would have chuckled too, if he had had a voice to laugh.

'It's getting late,' he said finally, his brows folding apologetically. 'I'm going to bed.'

"Yeah, alright. Good night."

Before he left, he turned back to her again, his face beaming concern. 'Are you sure you're alright?'

She smiled unconvincingly. "Well…I'm not," she admitted. Why not crack this once? Everyone already knew _something_ was wrong. "But I will be."

Joseph Wilson nodded, but he didn't push her to elaborate. Instead, he flashed a knowing half-smile and signed 'good night', walking away in the same direction Beast Boy had left.

"Good night, Joe."

Raven immediately fought away the blush that had risen in her cheeks and faced the door to her room. Even from outside, she felt the pull. _I don't want to go…I don't want to go…_ But for her persistence, something deep within her really did want to.

The stronger part of her, however, simply wouldn't allow it.

She would spend the night on the couch instead.

But eventually, she knew, in spite of all this effort, she would have to give in to the deep-rooted desire. Eventually, she would explore the unfathomable world.

World of Dust

Author: Rachel Roth (Nimfalath)

Fandom: His Dark Materials (Golden Compass/Northern Lights) and Teen Titans


End file.
